Wherein tenuous links are made between BioShock and two new Ayn Rand biographies

Working under the assumption that many of you have played BioShock, I point you in the direction of this week’s issue of The New Yorker, which has a quick review of two Ayn Rand biographies (here and here) that may interest you. It’s pretty funny because while the game’s story, which is unreservedly great, is in part inspired by the Rand novel “Atlas Shrugged,” the New Yorker review doesn’t miss a beat in calling the author, well, a hack.

Keeping in mind that I’ve never read the novel, and have zero plans to (I’m more of a non-fiction guy when it comes to reading), my basic understanding is that it’s all about how man is best served by being an individual, and is only hampered when he has to deal with icky other people, especially icky other people in the government keeping him down. How can man be expected to excel when he has to worry about society getting in his way?

Which brings us to the game. All throughout, you’re told that Rapture is (well, was) a place where man can be great, where he can rise as far as his talents will allow him without having to worry about the big bad government getting in the way.

Then again, you spend the game shooting icicles at large robots, so maybe that whole Utopia business was ill advised. Darn good shooter, though.